By Kerry Cole, Editor of Materials Performance (MP) magazine

Former U.S. Navy Blue Angels lead solo pilot John “Gucci” Foley shared lessons on trust, teamwork, and high-performance culture with AMPP members, drawing on his experience flying for one of the world’s most elite aviation teams.

As the keynote speaker at the 2026 AMPP Annual Conference + Expo, Foley told enthralled attendees Monday that the same principles that keep fighter pilots safe while flying inches apart at hundreds of miles per hour also apply to organizations responsible for protecting critical infrastructure.

Whether maintaining aircraft, pipelines, or industrial facilities, he said, success depends on teams that trust one another, communicate clearly, and execute precise processes.

Central to that performance, he said, is trust.

Before every flight, Foley said the last person he saw was his crew chief, who signaled that the aircraft was ready. The two then exchanged a handshake that represented more than a routine confirmation.

“That handshake is a trust contract,” Foley said in his remarks from Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center. “‘I trust you with my life.’”

Building that level of trust requires both discipline and preparation. Blue Angels pilots follow a rigorous daily process of briefings and debriefings designed to continuously refine their performance and learn from mistakes.

Foley illustrated the precision required in the team’s flying with the “knife-edge pass,” a maneuver in which two jets approach each other head-on at a combined speed of about 1,000 miles per hour and cross within a wingspan.

Before the maneuver, Foley said he would ask the opposing pilot how close their aircraft would pass.

“You know what his answer back to me was?” Foley said. “He said, ‘I’ll miss you.’”

Foley emphasized that high-performing teams also rely on shared understanding. In one exercise, he showed an image of jets flying in formation and asked the audience how many aircraft were in the picture. The correct answer, he explained, included the aircraft from which the photo was taken.

“One of the challenges of life is we all think we’re seeing the same thing — and we’re not,” he said.

To help teams perform at their best, Foley outlined five dynamics of high-performance cultures: creating a safe environment built on respect, checking ego at the door, maintaining open communication, taking accountability, and sustaining what he called “joyful effort.”

Gratitude, he said, is the element that helps teams remain resilient under pressure.

“That ‘glad to be here’ mindset,” Foley said, “is what sustains greatness.”